Tuesday, November 01, 2016

(Oklahoma City) – Oklahoma’s official pre-election voter registration statistics released on Nov. 1 show 2,157,450 Oklahomans are registered to vote in advance of the Nov. 8 General Election, State Election Board Secretary Paul Ziriax reported on Tuesday.

The statistics represent a net increase of more than 40,000 voters over the 2012 presidential election. The total was also higher than the official count before the 2004 election. Registration numbers did not reach the level set before the 2000 and 2008 presidential elections.

Since Jan. 15, Oklahoma has had a net gain of 178,643 voters. The biggest net beneficiary of the increases was the Republican Party, which added 103,802 voters. Independents added 46,586 voters, while Democrats saw in increase of 24,658 and Libertarians added 3,599. The Libertarian Party became recognized in Oklahoma earlier this year.

Republicans are growing the fastest in terms of raw numbers and share of the electorate, extending their lead as the state’s largest party. Republicans now make up 45.6 percent of all voters. Republicans first became the largest party in the state following the 2014 General Election. Independents, meanwhile, remain the fastest growing portion of the electorate, with registration among Independents rising at a rate of 17.5 percent since January.

Although the number of Democrats in the state grew over the year, the party’s share of the electorate continued to decline, a trend that has been consistent over several decades. Democrats were officially the state’s largest party from statehood until January 2015.

Americans Elect, a political organization that gained recognition in 2012 but failed to field any candidates, had 11 voters as of Nov. 1. The group will cease to exist after this year.

Oklahoma’s registered voters:

JAN. 15, 2016 NOV. 1, 2016

REPUBLICANS 880,130….44.5% 983,932….45.6%

DEMOCRATS 832,059….42.0% 856,717….39.7%

LIBERTARIAN N/A 3,599…...0.2%

AMERICANS ELECT 13…..N/A 11…….N/A

INDEPENDENTS 266,605….13.5% 313,191….14.5%

TOTAL 1,978,807 2,157,450

HISTORICAL VOTER REGISTRATION IN OKLAHOMA

The State Election Board began recording statewide voter registration statistics by party in 1960.

YEAR DEM REP IND OTHER/LIB

1960 82.0% 17.6% 0.4% N/A

1980 75.8% 22.8% 1.4% N/A

2000 56.7% 35.0% 8.3% *

NOV. 1 39.7% 45.6% 14.5% 0.2%*Registration for minor recognized parties or political organization was less than 0.0001%.